A question on Acer palmatum(Atropurpureum).....Do they flower ? (pic enclosed)...im assuming they are but what sort of insect would pollinate a flower so tiny, a tiny one i guess...... im jst curious to know really..many thanks. ;)

19 Apr, 2012

Answers

Yes they do flower and you get seeds from them - winged ones like a Sycamore and Maple. They are native to China, Taiwan and Japan so the insects there I assume will pollinate them. As I have seen then seed in the UK any number of insect, does not have to be small, just needs to get the pollen in the right place.

The seeds are easy to grow just collect in the Autumn put in a pot cover with grit leave by the back kitchen wall , I have two baby ones about year old now and have planted both in a bonsai pot makes them more special as the parents I have had for over 20 years and they are also in the same huge ceramic pots !! when I 1st planted them in, John innes no 3 added grit and slow realease fertiliser in late April and well waterd through the summer

there aresome very tiny beetles that crawl about the leaf litter and polynate such flowers . beetles are bye far the most common type of insect on the planet but like leopards arnt the easist creatures to see .